Bird flu won't hurt economy<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Minister of Finance Boediono said on Thursday that the bird flu
\noutbreak would not seriously harm the country's economy.<\/p>\n
He argued that bird flu was considered to be as dangerous as
\nSARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome), because it had not
\nkilled anybody in Indonesia.<\/p>\n
\"I think it (bird flu) will not have a (serious) impact on the
\neconomy. But we must move quickly (to curb the disease) so as not
\nto disrupt the economy,\" he said.<\/p>\n
According to one estimate, the livestock industry accounts for
\nless than two percent of the gross domestic product (GDP). Only
\nabout 4.7 million chickens of the total chicken population of 1.3
\nbillion, or 0.36 percent, has been killed by bird flu.<\/p>\n
Tourism and travel experts have also expressed optimism that
\ntourism, a major contributor to the GDP, would not suffer any
\nsignificant impact from bird flu.<\/p>\n
Although the government has confirmed a bird flu outbreak in
\nthe country, no human fatalities have occurred as yet.<\/p>\n
Ten people in the region have so far died from the disease.<\/p>\n
The World Health Organization (WHO), however, has warned that
\nbird flu could be more dangerous than SARS, especially if a new
\nviral strain emerges with the ability to spread from human to
\nhuman.<\/p>\n
The government is projecting the economy to grow by around 4.8
\npercent this year; last year saw a 4 percent growth.<\/p>\n
Boediono's optimism may be justified, considering how Asian
\neconomies performed last year despite the SARS epidemic.<\/p>\n
Asia's economies emerged from SARS and the Iraq war with
\nsurprising strength in 2003.<\/p>\n
SARS had the biggest impact on Asia's economies in the first
\nsemester of 2003, as was reflected in the slowing of exports,
\ntourism and the airline industry.<\/p>\n
The disease claimed the majority of victims in East Asia and
\nkilled 774 of more than 8,000 infected people globally before
\nbeing brought under control in June 2003.<\/p>\n
At the height of the crisis, fears abound that the impact of
\nSARS on the region's businesses would be equally deadly as
\nregional travel and tourism ground to a near standstill and
\neconomies in the region either shrank or slowed significantly.<\/p>\n
The Asian Development Bank estimated SARS cost Asian economies
\nas much as US$60 billion, or more than 1.5 percent of the
\nregional GDP.<\/p>\n
The Iraq war, which began when SARS peaked, and the terrorist
\nattacks in Indonesia also affected trade and business sentiments,
\nwhile the poor performance of the U.S. economy further created a
\ngloomy outlook.<\/p>\n
Yet the Asian economies proved unexpectedly resilient, thanks
\npartly to the U.S. economy strengthening in the second half of
\n2003, China's continued growth and quick recovery in travel and
\ntourism.<\/p>\n
Analysts have said that a turnaround in the U.S. economy and
\ncontinuing rapid growth in China's economy will provide a major
\nboost for other economies in the world this year.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/bird-flu-wont-hurt-economy-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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